chronicles_of_the_first_flamefandomcom-20200214-history
Benniszth the Blackened
Benniszth the Blackened was a Naenese warlock and vassal of Mikhalinn during the events of the close of the Second Era. A diabolist of great power, he was also a monster twisted both physically and spiritually. History Benniszth was once an officer serving in the ranks of Emperor Jhosh (at this time known by his birth name, Benna Hass), leading a troupe of soldiers who were exceptionally cruel and did not limit their persecutions to the Empire's enemies, but also preyed relentlessly upon the peasant class. Numerous instances of rape, arson and unlawful torture were attributed to his unit under his sanction. and eventually when they were sentences to be rounded up and executed, he fled with them into the wilderness, where their number became disparate groups of bandits who proceeded to terrorise the countryside. The highwaymen who were led personally by Benniszth himself would later become the infamous Red Seventeen. The Red Seventeen eventually came to travel numerous lands, having honed their heinous way of life over a period of more than ten years. They maintained relationships with a number of pirate crews, including a number who served Dru'Wan Blood-Reaver, and through use of these connections they found themselves upon the coast of Aia-Goah with the intent of delving deep into the continent of Vaishun in order to discover the legendary treasures sealed within the tomb of a great It-Eptan monarch. The impulsiveness which spurred this venture resulted in disaster, and half of the band met their demise on the way to the burial site due to loss of orientation and the terrible predators dwelling within the Vaishunian jungles. Once Benniszth and his remaining accomplices reached the tomb's entrance and unlocked the seal upon it, a serpentine monstrosity emerged from the depths and slaughtered his men. He was the only survivor, slaying the beast but succumbing to the terrible effects brought on by a mere scratch by its venomous fangs. His blood boiled and the flesh of his body seemed itself to partially melt, leaving him horribly deformed, crippled and alone in the deepest reaches of Charnoth. Crawling inside the burial vault, inside he discovered his dark salvation from certain death - a consecrated robe of black silk and a pair of ritual daggers composed of a metal unknown to him, inscribed with runes of demonic power. Tracing the runes in his state of agonised semi-consciousness, he was visited by the demon which was later to become his patron - Carnivean. It offered him guidance out of his hopeless predicament in return for a blasphemous rite enacted to bring its essence closer to the physical world. At the creature's behest, fire erupted upon the ancient it-eptan king's burial slab, reducing the withered corpse to ashes and super-heating the stone. Benniszth was ordered to disembowel his dead companions and to cook their organs for consumption, the demon's voices echoing inescapably within his head. He did as he was bidden, and after spending a few days resting within the tomb eating flesh and fruits his patron pointed out as safe he departed back to the coastline, navigating by spiritual visions.